Not Everyone Can Be Saved

Chapter 3

The assassin was reclining in one of the chairs with her feet propped up on the table. All of the Avengers were there, minus Bucky. The group watched cautiously as the woman began casually twirling a knife around her fingers.

Just then, the former Winter Soldier walked through the door.

"Hey guys, I heard Clint did it again. What--"

He cut himself off immediately, upon seeing (Y/N). The assassin in him took over as he marched toward her, pulling her out of the chair and pinning her to the wall, his metal hand wrapped around her throat.

Out of instinct, (Y/N) already had a pistol pressed under his chin.

"Good to see you too, Soldier..."

"What are you doing, Barnes?" Clint demanded.

"You shouldn't have brought her here, Barton. She's dangerous."

(Y/N) spoke up before Clint could reply.

"So are you, James, but I see they're still keeping you around."

He growled, tightening his grip. (Y/N) cocked her gun.

"Easy, Soldier."

She flashed him a flirtatious grin.

"I'm here because I want to change." she said, raising her eyebrows in mock solemnity.

"Let her go, Buck," Steve called.

Reluctantly, the sergeant obeyed. The assassin holstered her weapon and everyone relaxed.

"Well," (Y/N) emphasized sarcastically, "Not that this little 'meet and greet' hasn't been fun, but I'd really like to see where I'll be staying now."

Clint showed her to one of the spare rooms, though she had no time to get settled. Steve insisted on seeing her spar with Natasha in order to assess her.

Once in the training room, with Bucky eyeing her warily, (Y/N) stepped toward the mat.

"Hang on just a second, Shadow." Tony called. "Please leave all weapons outside the ring."

(Y/N) raised an eyebrow.

"What did you just call me?"

Tony shrugged flippantly.

"I'm kind of the self-designated nickname distributor. You're supposedly the stealthiest assassin to ever terrorize the night, so my first thought was 'Shadow'."

He paused.

"But you still have to leave your weapons out here."

Rolling her eyes at the billionaire's antics, (Y/N) removed her cloak to reveal a vest filled with knives. She pulled it off, along with her gun belt, staring Clint down all the while.

Her message was very clear: 'I don't need these toys to kill you. Just because I'm disarmed doesn't mean I'm weak, so don't you dare try to lock me up.'

As she tossed her things down, she shot Bucky a threatening look.

"Don't touch my stuff," she sassed.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Princess."

Clint frowned. How had they suddenly gone from threatening each other to flirting? Bucky definitely had some questions to answer.

Natasha stepped into the ring.

"You'll be sparring with me for the assessment. The match is over in ten minutes or when one of us pins the other for ten seconds."

"Alright," Steve called. "Ready, and... Go!"

With that, the two assassins were off. It was eerily fascinating to watch as the two of them danced around each other like a pair of deadly gymnasts.

Natasha threw a punch, but (Y/N) caught her hand, attempting to spin her around. The redhead, however, saw what she was trying to do and took ahold of her opponent's other arm, locking them together in their combative struggle.

They went back and forth like that for a while, each trying to shake the other loose. Finally, (Y/N) let herself go limp, pulling Natasha to the ground with her. Using her feet as a springboard, she flipped the Avenger over her head, pulling herself to her feet at the same time. Nat kicked the assassin's feet out from under her, sending her to the ground again. Before Natasha could get back up, (Y/N) pounced on her. They rolled a couple times, each trying to gain the upper hand.

Just when it looked like Natasha was going to win, (Y/N) flipped her over, planting one knee in her back and pinning the spy's arm behind her.

"Ten minutes are up." Steve announced.

(Y/N) let Natasha up.

"You were good," she acknowledged.

"So were you," Natasha replied, not even out of breath.

"You're better than I am," the assassin said honestly.

(Y/N) had been conditioned to admire an opponent's skill. If someone had bested her, it only meant that she needed to train harder in order to be worthy of such a challenge.

"If the time hadn't run out,you would have pinned me."

Natasha nodded, respectfully accepting her words.

(Y/N) turned to Clint.

"So, sweetheart, do I have your club's approval?" she inquired with a smirk.

"We're going to take some time to discuss it," Steve interjected.

"You do that, Captain," she replied with a wink.

She then turned to walk out, throwing one last remark over her shoulder.

"I'll be in my room... If anyone needs me."

Pietro chuckled after she disappeared, clapping a hand against Clint's shoulder.

"I think you might have your hands full with this one, old man."

Clint sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah..." he muttered to himself. "That I do..."